Students from the Summer Program
(SUMMER BLAST) at Kohala Elementary School in Hawi, Hawaii, on the Big Island
participated in a table tennis on the last day of the summer program. The
program allowed for 96 different students to get a small taste of this exciting
sport. The 12 students were hand picked to play based on their playing ability
in the past 4 weeks. The students ranged in age from 7 years of age to 10 years
of age. Most of the students had only 3 or 4 sessions to learn the rules and
some of the basics of this great Olympic Sport, currently the most played sport
in the world. Those sessions lasted only 45 minutes with 6-8 students each.
Therefore, very little time was given to really teach the students much in the
way of playing properly. Although the rules were learned; we allowed for a
variation in the serving rules as well as playing 15 point games until the final
match, which was best of 3 games to 11 points each. The students were taught
grip, stance, basic spin, the rules and their absolute favorite thing: how to
hide the ball to start a match! When you watch the video, you'll see some really
great points considering their age and time in the sport. Some of these kids
have amazing hand/eye coordination for their age. It was a thrill to see the
smiles on their faces; the cheering for each other to do really well; the
excellent sportsmanship, even in losing; and the desire to play and win.

3rd Place winners got a trophy
head. The 2nd Place winner received a trophy. The Champion won a larger trophy
plus a new paddle.